Tuesday, March 13, 2001

Introduction

These days, it seems like producing 3rd generation Socket A boards is akin to having a license to print money. Shortly after receiving the EPoX EP-8KTA3 for testing, we were visited by the new Micro-Star K7T Pro-2A - a new revision of a board we initially tested some months ago. After a quick look at this new puppy, we quickly found ourselves synched for a new round of testing, and eager to poke & prod the innards of the K7T Pro-2A's slightly aged VIA KT133 chipset against the EPoX EP-8KTA3 is a sort of comparison review. So, let's say we get on to the good stuff, and take a look at MSI's K7T Pro-2A, a.k.a the MS-6330.

Configuration

Configuration of the K7T Pro-2A is accomplished from within the BIOS, thanks to its jumperless design. All adjustments of the CPU are thus performed from within the "Frequency/Voltage Control" menu.

Much like the EPoX EP-8KTA3, the KT7 Pro-2A is gifted with a number of functions related to Overclocking.

As expected, we found the option to alter the Front-Side Bus frequency, this time from 100MHz to 132MHz in steps of 1MHz. Here, the K7T Pro-2A immediately takes a step forward in terms of the flexibility of its FSB, but another step back due to a somewhat range. While the K7T Pro-2A can't quite make it to 133MHz, the EP-8KTA3 only hits its limit at 166MHz. Under these circumstances, we can well assume that the K7T Pro-2A wasn't designed specifically to support CPUs with a 133MHz system bus.

The CPU's clock multiplier can also be set to operate at between 5X and 12.5X; presuming of course that you've installed a CPU without a multiplier lock.

Next, we find functions for altering the Vcore and Vio voltages - as indicated by the following table. Here, the K7T Pro-2A is quite versatile in the area of the Vcore, but less so with the Vio voltage.

Also, while the EP-8KTA3 comes with a function allowing user's to adjust the voltage supplied to the AGP port, no such function is available on the K7T Pro-2A.

The Pro-2A does however come with the all-important, independently operating memory bus, which can be set to 100MHz, 133MHz, or to allow the system to automatically determine the proper operating frequency.

In short, the advantage goes to the EPoX EP-8KTA3 in terms of sheer configuration versatility, due primarily to its support for FSB frequencies higher than 133MHz, and the ability to alter the AGP port voltage.

Next: Technical details.